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Android will now tell you which apps you should uninstall

Updated Dec 19th, 2018 9:18PM EST
BGR

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Since phones with 16GB of storage are tragically still a thing (and because Guitar Hero takes up 2GB on its own), apps can be a real storage headache. Google has released a tiny new utility that could help out users who have run out of space.

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First spotted by Android Police, ‘uninstall manager’ isn’t a standalone program, but rather a change to the Google Play Store app. To works pretty simply: if you’re trying to install a new app, but don’t have space on your device to do so, the Play Store will give you a list of potential apps you could uninstall to make space. They’re listed in a pop-up within the app, and ranked by popularity, with the size of each app and the amount of space you need to free up in order to install the new thing.

It tries to suggest apps you don’t often use, which makes sense — I’ve got pages and pages of apps on my phone which I’ve used maybe once, and are taking up space. With 32GB of storage it’s less of an issue, but for people stuck on an entry-level 16GB (or 8GB, on some cheaper handsets), this could be a big help.

To get the uninstall manager, you should update to the latest version of the Play Store app (assuming you have the space, of course).

Chris Mills
Chris Mills News Editor

Chris Mills has been a news editor and writer for over 15 years, starting at Future Publishing, Gawker Media, and then BGR. He studied at McGill University in Quebec, Canada.